CooKs

I have the best husband and Jason ever!!

2011-05-16T19:38:00.000-07:00

Well it is official!!! I have the best life! Friday the 13th was the beginning of the most fabulous birthday of my life!! Chris mentioned he had a little surprise planned and that I should bring a change of clothes to work because we would be short on time. I figured we were going to a show or had good dinner reservations because those are the sort of things that make me a happy birthday girl. A bit of background here: last week was honestly one of the busiest weeks at work EVER and I'd been just beat from the ten hour shifts. In walks Chris an hour before I'm supposed to be off and says he is there to pick me up!! I was confused... And then my boss walks by and says "yep!! Get goin'!". Can I just say that leaving work early might have truly been the highlight of it all, but just you wait. When I get out to the parking lot I am surprised to see Jason in the car with Rufus:

(the adorable dachshund pup that is the subject of my next 100 posts at least).
When I got in the car I figured I would get to hear the plan....but no. We drove to Salt Lake I was confused that Rufus was with us... were we headed to a dog show? We stopped in Clearfield and dropped Roofykins off at Chris's aunt Shelly's house to get babysat (we must be going to a show and dinner, me thinks) As we approach Salt Lake City we take a turn westbound! Ah ha! We are headed to Wendover!! Who could be headlining?? Boys II Men? Willy Nilson? What fun we will have on our trashy trip to Wendover!! As I am naming out guess's of possible C-class performers we could be going to I FINALLY realize that we exited from the road to all things trashy like 10 minutes ago and were now sitting in the AIRPORT PARKING LOT!! Hoooooray! I doubt I have ever been so stoked in all of my life!! The idea of an insta-trip thrilled me big time! Chris finally spilled the beans that we were headed for Denver (one of my fav places) and informed me that we had all kinds of fun things planned! Those tricksters!! We were REALLY pressed for time so we busted over to the terminal and flew out asap. The plane was TINY and as I walked on to it and was looking around I said "this is........ Cute" in a somewhat skeptical voice causing a large Santa looking lady to bust out into an uproarious laughter.... She thought I was REAL funny. don't know why I just shared that... I guess no detail is to small. When we arrived in Denver, we went to pick up our rental car and got a free upgrade.... The trip continued on it's perma-high point. We stayed in a really nice HYATT hotel room, can I just say- I was really impressed with their complimentary breakfast.

The next day we got an early start at all the awesomeness! We headed to the Denver City Botanical Garden's! Chris and Jason have heard me talk of nothing besides the gardens my sisters and I saw in PA and so they decided to treat me to this one! on our way we saw a farmer's market in session and stopped in. I LOVE these markets and was so happy to get to go to this one that totally showed up the one we have here at home. So many yummy foods, this market was no joke! Yumm! So we got a little turned around while looking for the gardens but I didn't mind because it gave us a chance to meander through a really ritzy part of town with tons of gorgeous houses. Denver is so Salt Lake Cityish to me. I'm defiantly a fan.

Anyways, the garden was really a treat! It wasn't quite as exotic as the Pennsylvania garden but that didn't make it any less of a gem. I LOVED it! It had a lot of Indian themed aspects, cacti, zero-scaping-- this garden was very true to it's roots (no pun intended). It was nice to spend some quality time in the outdoor gardens, everything smelled and looked so beautiful.

The fun did not stop!! Next up on the agenda was a tour of Hammond's Candy Factory. They specialize in candy canes and also ribbon candy but do some chocolates as well. I was really excited! A good time was had, but I will say it wasn't exactly the wonderful land of Willy Wonka if ya know what I mean. Chris pointed out that the company did not follow LEAN principals. Haha. At this point we were ready to get our EAT on! We headed for my restaurant pick Cherry Cricket. Hamburgers.Straight.From.Heaven. is what the joint should have been called. These burgers weren't kidding around. Jason was put off by the pinkness factor, but not me.... I enjoyed the ale cart burger topping menu that included cream cheese, fried egg, peanut butter and every other thing! This place was SO good, no wonder it was ranked number one on Urban Spoon. Eat there.

We headed back to the hotel, and later headed out for a lovely walk in the rain to the Denver light rail stop down the street. Quick note: One would think that Chris was the wicked witch of the west with the way he acts about a little rain fall..... He is a bit of a hydrophobic freak, bless his heart. I don't mind a spot of rain.... I find it invigorating. We took the rail to Larame's Square downtown. A super cute nightlife area where we had tickets to a comedy show! surprise after surprise! The comedian we saw was Nick Thune and he was funny! I didn't really know I would care for a comedy show, but I actually really enjoyed it. The lesser known comedians that opened for him were actually funnier. It was really fun, and not something we would normally do. Loved it! It was after 1 am when we got back to our hotel and I was tuckered! The next morning we had a breakfast and then pretty much had to head out. It was such an amazing whirlwind getaway, and I feel so lucky that that was my SECOND trip to Denver with my two best friends in the entire world. Can i just say props to my loving husband who secretly coordinated things at work to make sure I would be able to get away. Jason: wow! you really care about me. Chris: I know we are broker then Jason, so extra thanks to you for spoiling my brains out and reminding me that I am the luckiest girl in the world on a daily basis. I love you guys!!!! PS: I can't wait for you guys to trump this on my next birthday, wink wink!

SISTER TRIP PART 1!!!

2011-04-16T13:33:00.000-07:00

Well! I Did it! I went on the most awesome trip ever! My dear sister Lisa recently moved from a house in Souderton PA to a darling place in Doylestown PA. This house happens to have an amazing history. It is located next to an extravagant mansion and was the care takers cottage at one time. On it's lot is a very unique water tower pagoda (of course). Well the house was awesome, and probably older then anything in my entire town haha.

After Lisa picked Kara and me up from the airport we drove around Philly for a while (it looks to be a very neat city with all kinds of artsy entertainment available.) We went to this really cool indoor market that had all sorts of vendors with different food ethnicity's. I had some delish Indian food with a yummy Lassi I had never tried: cardomom. I LOVED it. When we got back to Lisa's place we helped with some moving of items (she is still getting settled) and just spent some quality sister time. High lights included Kara and I both smacking our heads on the ceiling near Lisa's stair case, Kara coveting lisa's roller blinds, Lisa's levitating furniture, and squeezing the luxurious air mattress down the stairs. We then had a wonderful goldengirl-esque moment around the dining table-late at night- eating cheese cake!

The next morning was kind of leisurely. We just puttered around and eventually packed up the kids and all of the overnight stuff in a car and hit the road. We ate lunch at Wegmens. The most glorious grocery store you could ever dream of! It was wholefoods-ish but on a way bigger scale. I got sushi for lunch and really enjoyed the tofu that I got. YUM! We wondered around the store for much longer then anticipated and marveled at the cheese selection, meats, chocolates. Almonds in honey, every variety of caviar, nut and berry encrusted cheese, double devon cream and much much more. It was grand! We then continued our journey towards DC! We decided to make a stop at a garden that Lisa's was considering getting a membership to (fun events and concerts are scheduled there). It turned out to be THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE ON EARTH! Sorry to be blasphemous but I have a feeling it trumped the garden of Eden. It was on a huge, rolling piece of land and went on a stroll towards the conservatory. Well it was well AH-MAZ-ING! The only flaw was our own, we showed up 20 minutes till close :( . Well, we took in as much as we could and then had to leave... promising to return. Days later we were able to but , ALAS, we showed up 30 minutes till close! No regrets though, it was fun to get more time at the garden but it would have taken days to see all we really wanted to see. Here are some photos that do NO JUSTICE WHATSOEVER!
One of the advantages to coming just before close, BOTH times, is that no one was really around, it was our own Secret Garden!
Here is a picture of a vertical garden surrounding some elevator doors. Is that not amazing??
There were endless hallways that looked like this:
Here is the outside of the main conservatory. Beautiful!:
We only saw the tip of the iceberg of this gorgeous garden. Lisa purchased a membership for her and her family and it included a guest pass so go book a trip to visit her right now and you might get to see this!
This was a highlight for me. It was called "the Silver Garden" and was filled with silvery plants mostly cactus's (cacti I guess). Some of the plants were as high as the ceiling (A really high ceiling I might add). It was really an interesting take on a garden. I think Lisa really liked this part. IT looked "silvery-er" in person :)
Each section had it's own weather. Each room had it's own theme. Tropical. Desert. Forest. Jungle. We missed the whole Fruit garden and a whole lot more :(

Here Lisa and I are infront of the vertical garden.

After leaving the garden (the first time) we drove for quite a while. And finally made it to DC! It was dark when we arrived but we decided to take a good look around. We drove around and saw many of the memorials, all lit up in splendor, from the car. We got out of the car and walked up and saw the Washington Monument and spent quite a bit of time browsing the World War II memorial. Being the bad guests that we are, we arrived at Song's house at 11 PM. Song is my beautiful cousin who lives in Virginia (right outside of DC). She was so kind to stay up (with her fabulous husband Mike) and visit with us. Her house was lovely and her food was yummy! The next morning we headed out for a glorious day in DC! Well at this rate there is going to be like a sister trip part VIII. I will try to summerize on the next few posts. This is it for now.

2011-04-02T17:49:00.000-07:00

WOW! It has been a LONG while! I just feel like my life is way too boring, and therefore un-blogable. After reading back on my last post I realized a few things have actually happened since then! Ya see, that was my plan. Let enough time go by so it seems like I have all kinds of news :) This is gunna be a massive entry. Let me just say that there is some poor photography issues and some weird layout issues on this post but I just want to post it as is so I can move on to more current junk soon! Welp, HERE-GOES!

I'll start out with an update on my quilting shananagons!
You know how I got a sewing machine for my birthday? Well I finished my first quilt and 3 others!!!! This is quite something, because let's be honest, I'm a quitter. My loving husband admits that he never thought he would see those scraps of fabric become a blanket. So supportive. Haha. Well, here is my first quilt eva!

Then I made this orange and brown one for Lisa's birthday, (I can't write this without it being underlined for some reason....why?)

I made this smaller lap blanket for our living room with Chris's help one night when we were bored. I am loving it!!!Below is a picture of Chris's pumpkin he carved! Utah state all the way!!! It looked way better in person!

Chris and I had such a fun time traveling to Houston to visit Chris's aunt and uncle and family! Shelly and Eric were the most amazing hosts as usual. They spoiled us rotten taking us out to fabulous restaurants for every meal, taking me to various upscale candy and cupcake shops, treating us to a comedy show, and more! I loved Texas's take on Thanksgiving dinner! The smoked turkey was the bomb-diggity! Love you Shelly, Eric, Adam, Marley and all of Eric's fabulous family!!!! Thanks for being so good to us!

Then it was on to Christmas!

FYI I stole the below pics from my sister Kuru's blog. And since most (if not all) of my viewers probably read her blog too, you've probably seen this before... but here-goes anyway. These photo's are from our mock Christmas Eve party. We had our annual party a bit early so that my darling sister Lisa could be present (while in town from "Tran"silvania.) We had your standard run-of-the-mill Lebanese dinner. It was AH-mas-ing! A huge shout out to my endlessly talented sister Kara for all of the delish main dishes. Menu items included pita bread, spanakopita, several varieties of hummus, spinach fatayer, lamb sfiha, fruits and veggies, ful mudammas, tabouleh....... (don't worry, I don't know how to spell or say any of that stuff.... I DO know how to use cut and paste from Kara's blog though). I particularly enjoyed the nativity scene this year. Aren't those kids darling??

Here is a picture of my favorite Christmas decoration! My talented granddad made this for me! It is a puzzle where all of the nativity scene fits inside the manger. Pretend the lamp is a shinning star (haha)!

Here's our Christmas tree!
Anyone who is reading this probably already heard about the most amazing Christmas miracle! My boss's at work surprised me with an iPAD as a Christmas bonus!!!! I have never been more thrilled! I have LOVE LOVE LOVED it! This is the picture I texted them afterwards so they would (hopefully) know how much I love it! Thank you SO SO much!!! Receiving such an amazing gift made me feel like a million bucks!
Here is a picture of Chris ( a common scene at the cook household where Chris rigs up a situation to work on homwork and watch various sporting events all at once) that was instantly transformed with one of my various fancy ipad apps!

how artsy!

The highlight of the Christmas season was when my darling sisters and I went to The Nutcracker! Afterwards we went out for a fancy dinner and talked for hours! It was such a treat.... an amazing gift really. There isn't a "christmasier" feeling then the feeling you have at the Nutcracker. A close second is watching Meet Me in St. Louis with your man by the Christmas tree. Lucky for me I did both this year! I am certain there isn't a luckier girl on planet earth.

There have been a lot of changes at my work place! One of the more exciting changes is that Chris now works there part time. He has the fun job of following up on denied medical claims and other various billing tasks. I love seeing his cute self around the office from time to time! I am really enjoying my job! I have been working as an assistant to the doctor(s) for quite some time and have had the opportunity to do a lot of learning. It has been such a good job even excluding the ipad!
I have seen a lot of really good movies lately! Here's a little taste:
My dear friend/co-worker Emily shares my love of musicals! I was telling her my sob story about my desperate search for two musicals that have all but vanished off the face of the planet! Anchors Aweigh and The Unsinkable Molly Brown. I was shocked when she told be that she owned both of them! She holds a secret weapon (a cutthroat yardsale shopper for a mother). Can I just say that the two hottie's pictured below melt my heart big time!
The Unsinkable Molly Brown isn't amongst the best of musicals but it's still good stuff!We of course went to see True Grit. LOVED IT!!!! There is hardly a Coen Brothers movie that we don't own (for good reasons too!) I love me some Jeff Bridges!!!
Chris finally got to go on his trip to Italy that has been after months of anticipation! I will be posting on that next time! Be excited... Be very excited! While he was gone Jason and I spent some quality time together! We watched Pride and Prejudice together! Not the wimpy short little two hour version with Keira Knightly. The 5 hour long A&E version that makes me swoon for some Collin Firth! All I have to say is.... "MR. DARCY!!"

In just 3 short days I will be leaving on a trip with my fabulous sister Kara to visit my fabulous sister Lisa in Pennsylvania!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We will also be going to DC and New York! This trip is going to be EPIC!!! I will let you know all the saucy details soon! I will leave you now with another sexy basset picture:

The clip of the day!

2010-09-14T12:24:00.000-07:00

(last) weekend update, and two other posts as well

2010-08-08T11:06:00.000-07:00

I had a great weekend. Let's just face it. On Saturday morning Chris E and I walked down to the farmer's market and our pals Danny and Sarah met us there... we had some breakfast and did some shoppin'. Later on Danny and Chris E went to the Real (re-AL) game and I decided to drive down with them and to invite myself to sushi with the parental unit down is SLC! My parents have been on a bit of a sushi kick lately and have really been bragging about all of their escapades. It was a major treat to go out with them! Yum! I get MAJOR sushi cravings and this hit the spot! We followed the sushi with some delish gelato. I was SPOILED!! It was awesome to spend some quality time with my mom and dad. After all the yumminess we went for a short drive and got an awesome view of the city! Thanks folks for a great time!

Possibly the best family meal EVER!

2010-08-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

My darling sister Lisa-Face and her fam were in town over the 24th so my family pulled out all of the stops to make a pimped out Asian style meal.... I won't tantalize you with all of the details but I thought I would share this picture of (just) the appetizers. Jason, Chris and I refer to this as pre-dinner and we all agree that it is the most charming Baker family signature move. The photo doesn't do it justice.

Too much of a good thing

2010-08-08T10:00:00.000-07:00

Here is what happened: craved red velvet cupcakes. Three bottles (yes three) of red food coloring and a lot of flour and sugar later.......

These were pretty tastey.....Careful though, all that food coloring caused me to poop red for a week. SORRY for the over share, I'm just sayin'.

Barcelona, Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballe

2010-07-28T09:05:00.000-07:00

There are 2 songs in the world that make make me happier then any other. They are both Queen songs. Under Pressure (of course... that one is "our song") and this fantastical number : BARCELONA!

If you don't like this song then don't tell me..... because it may change my feelings for you.

back from the dead!

2010-07-23T07:49:00.000-07:00

HELLO! I have been a terrible blogger..... but I am ready to try again. Let me start by following up on the boolish topic. 20 POUNDS of cookie dough was delivered, at my work, and it was the most excited thing EVER!!!!!!!!!! It was so good to be reunited with boolish, and am looking forward to trying other Otis Spunkmeyer flavors.

A lot of exciting things have happened. My work has exploded and is no longer recognizable to me. Now that we have Dr. Feistmann (Vitreo-retinal surgeon) things have been so busy!!! The good news is that we will be hiring someone mighty soon and I will get more training to be an ophthalmic technician, rather then just being stuck as the receptionist/optician/biller woman. I am really excited about this! MAJORLY! Let me tell you an amazing tid-bit about the new doc. I have to start with a little explanation. For like a year or more, me and my co-worker have lunched (on a daily basis) at the Logan Regional Hospital Cafeteria. Don't be confused. We don't work in or near the hospital.... we drive there for lunch. You might be thinking hospital food is pretty much notorious for being nasty, and why would anybody eat there willingly. Uh-uh! There is this like A-MAZ-ING salad bar for super cheap with all of the toppings you could ever want and more! For a long time it has been the most sensible option for me and Chelsey because we aren't rich and we wanted a healthy(er... haha) option. Now you might be wondering what this has to do with Dr. Feistmann. Out of the blue (after finding out how much we loved it) he opened up a tab for us at the hospital so we can eat there for lunch, every day, FOR FREE! Happy day!!! What a freakin' treat!!!! Every day I feel like a high roller (yes, at a cafeteria) when I'm all "put it on my tab" haha, I never get sick of it! Everyday when I am going through the line and I all of the sudden remember IT'S FREE!! yippy. Anyway, that was kind of a long shpeil. Hopefully someone out there appreciates how awesome this is.

Chris E has been working very hard. I want to say, I love him. Even as I type this my eyes get a bit misty, because I just really feel lucky to have him. He has continued being stellar in his classes and is excited about starting the MBA program next month. I'll be honest, I am a bit terrified. He is quiting his job (YES!!). Last day is in about a week!! (YES!!) but we are gunna be REAL tight on the cashola (NO!!) and gunna see each other less (NO!!) and then I'll be angry (UGLY!) and have to hang out with just Jason (HAHA, just kidding Jason... but really... that's gunna suck.) but, I know we can do it!! I know it's the right thing! So here we go. As a part of Chris's program he with get to take a trip somewhere over sea's in the spring! There are 4 incredible choices for the trip.... more on that soon!

Last weekend Chris and I went to a Deer Valley Musical Festival concert (in Park City) of Ben Folds and the Utah Symphony. We kind of went in honor of our anniversary which is on the 25th (three years baby!). We were super stoked about the concert which was held on the base of a ski lift at deer valley resort (beautiful!) at an out door amphitheater (for my sister Kara's sake.... pronounce this word correctly... as if this helps... here ya go: ămˈfə-thēˌə-tər. Due to some unexpected construction, we were running late and it was a bit stressful. Once we got there and found a spot to lay our picnic blanket and busted out our fine cheeses, meats, and crackers, we had a great time! I am sad to say that the music was a bit disappointing :(. The sound quality wasn't good (being out doors has it's downfall) and there was like an annoying reverb thing happening for most of the night. Our bum's got really sore too, haha! Towards the end of the night the sound improved (and the hot sun went down) and a great time was had! Here is a not so great photo:

During the month of June we had a faboo family trip in Park City. Chris enjoyed golfing with my dad, and I enjoyed sister-slash-auntie time. I will NEVER get sick of my nephew Benson calling both me and Chris "krusta" in the most adorable kid voice! We did a lot of fun things but the highlight for me was when Lisa bought an assortment of exotic Vosges Chocolate's and the ladies of my family huddled around the table for a taste testing. Here is a tid-bit from the Vosges mission statement: "The Voseges Haut-Chocolat mission is to create a luxury chocolate experience rooted in a sensory journey of bringing about awareness to indigenous cultures through the exploration of spices, herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, nuts, chocolate and the obscure." Everything about the chocolate was beautiful. The packaging. The description on HOW to taste the chocolate. The TASTE! My favorite flavors included:

Naga Exotic: sweet Indian curry+coconut+deep milk chocolate

Creole Exotic: New Orleans chicory coffee+cocoa nibs+Sao Thome bittersweet chocolate.

Mo's Milk Chocolate Bacon Bar (her most famous): apple wood smoked bacon+alder wood smoked salt+deep milk chocolate.

I did a little reading and learned Katrina Markoff is the owner/chocolatier/woman behind it all. How amazing would it be to create chocolate for a living!!!! I know I could never be at that level, but it has inspired me to get a little more creative in the kitchen. I purchased "Candy Making for Dummies" and who knows maybe soon I'll be making pork chop chocolate (that was a joke...kindof.)

Although I haven't had a chance to dabble much into the chocolate making world just yet I have been getting busy in the kitchen (that sounds weird, haha.) Last Christmas my mom blessed me with the most amazing cook book. America's Test kitchen. Maybe you've heard of the show on food network. The gist is they perfect recipes by making them a bajillion times and figuring how to get the best results. They also explain why it works, like why a certain ingredient works better then another, or certain method won out. It makes super impressive dishes and you learn a lot about how to reach great results in other cooking as well. We have used it like crazy since getting it last december. This last week we made the homemade Margarita pizza, and the Chicken Stir fry on a crunchy noodle cake dish. They both turned out great. I also made the dark chocolate cupcake with vanilla bean buttercream frosting. I swear I have never baked ANYTHING from scratch and it turned out to be a real treat and a good time. All I can say is YUM! My favorite recipe out of the book so far is the chicken tikka masala ( I am a major sucker for Indian food and this dish is ya-ya-ya yummy!) Here are the photo's from the cookbook, and the crazy thing is when you are done cooking your food it actually looks like the picture!!

For the 4th of July we enjoyed having Penni up for the annual Cruise In (car show). I enjoyed watching the viewers of the parade more then the parade itself. Around that same time Chris and I went down to SLC for the art festival and got to meet up with Penni at that time as well. What a gem!

Jason's birthday was a week or two ago and he was out of town for it, so it kinda got passed by un-celebrated.... other then the KICK-A knife set I got him. REALLY. I usually don't boast about gifts that I give (i usually give pretty crappy gifts) but let me just say: YOU ARE WELCOME JASON, and I MUST LOVE YOU. (come to mention it, I really DO love you and I hope you had a great birthday)

Yesterday I was sitting at my desk when in walked what I thought was another patient, but instead it was none other then my darling sister!!!!! Lisa is visiting from Pennsylvania (HOOOORAY!) and we got together last night and chilled while our men went golfing. It was so fun to see her and her cute kiddo's and I am looking forward to our whole family getting together on Saturday.

Well, talk about long winded! Sorry to rattle on. I will be posting more frequently again, thank you for listening.

THIS JUST IN!!!!!!!!!

2010-05-28T10:33:00.000-07:00

EVERYONE!!!!!! BLOGING MAKES A DIFFERENCE!!!! I just got a comment on my "ode to Boolish" blog from (practically) Otis Spunkmeyer himself!!!!!!!!!! Anyone is welcome to scroll back to the older post and read the details......... but the point is there is hope yet for me to reunite with Boolicious!!!!!!! Wow! I am really happy about this!!!!! I will keep you all (and by "you all" I pretty much mean my grandparents and aunt kit) posted!!!!!! I don't know how this happend.... how did they find my post? Big boolish Brother is watching!

June has GOT to be good

2010-05-28T07:38:00.000-07:00

It MUST!!! Everyday Chris finds out more things that have to be done, read, submitted, blah blah blah before school in August. He is gunna be a busy man fo sho! I have excitement slash dread for July because that is when my work is going to go from busy to hyper mode busy. With the retinal specialist that is joining the practice I work for, my job duties will double. I am really excited though, I am looking forward to learning more about the mystical retina (the part of the eye that we currently don't deal with at all) . Back to how awesome June MUST be...... Next weekend I have 4 days for some quality kick-A family time in Park City. I am especially excited because my darling sister Lisa and her two adorable sons are coming all the way from Pennsylvania to join in the fun. I am very excited to see her, I have really missed her! I am a little saddened that that weekend also happens to be PRIDE in Salt Lake City (a weekend of celebration for the gay community in Utah) I attended last year, and enjoyed lots of free entertainment, delish food, and had an all around good time-- everyone around was so gay! By gay I mean HAPPY! Everyone seemed truly happy to be able to celebrate what is definitely NOT seen as something to celebrate here in Utah. Anyhow, the next weekend is vacant.... there might be a yard sale in the works, and the next week is 3 days of boating and camping in Flaming Gorge! YIPPEE!!!!

Here is a little update on some previous posts (while I am rambling on) Chris E's vision is doing great since his Lasik touch up.... fe-uwy! The garden that J-s-o-n and I planted is STILL not dead! hooray! a lot of people here in Cache valley have been complaining about how rainy and dreary it has been.... the plants don't seem to mind and neither do I! Since I've lived here we have never had such a long spring and I am loving it! I have been making excellent progress on my quilt and I'm just a day away from being completely done with the top... now I've just got to figure out what to do next! I recently watched Oklahoma!

It's hard to type these next words: I had never seen it. (I failed to mention that in my embarrassing confession in an earlier post) It was freaking good! I loved it, and was almost tempted to re-watch it right then and there. OH! let me back-track for a sec, I am really excited to spent some quality time with the latest addition to the fam: Maxwell Baker Toone! My darling sister Kara is good and making adorable nieces and nephews for me! Here is a picture for your viewing pleasure:

sexy part II

2010-05-27T10:21:00.000-07:00

Blow Pop Run

2010-05-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

Us, cruisin' around enjoying blow pops (one of my favorite non-chocolate treats). This was a "Life is good" moment!!! fo sho!

I'm not crying.... I've just been cutting onions...

2010-05-25T13:51:00.000-07:00

animals that are good for a laugh

2010-05-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

2010-05-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

In the first or second week of my time at Snow College, I got this really bad infection that decided to wreak havoc on a lymph node in my neck. I got really ill, then really really ill, and just before I thought an Alien was going to bust out of my neck..... my dad showed up and took me home. He saved me. He took me to all the medical appointments and it was determined fairly quickly that surgery was necessary. My mom was out of town for work, I'm used to having her by my side when I'm sick, but no prob.... my dad was there and took care of everything including me. DAD: Thanks for everything you do for me! I hope your birthday is fantastic!!! I love you!

2010-05-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

Jason gave me this fabulous Coach bag for my birthday that I really don't deserve and probably put to shame! The truth is, I LOVE IT! I have never had a quality purse ( what with the worchestershire tragedy and the ranching disaster.... 2 purse mishaps that are a whole different blog entry that justify having crappy purses...). I feel so spoiled with it! I am defiantly not cool enough to have it, but feel flattered that Jason thinks I am. The picture of me (in a phone booth) is to show that the door knob isn't the only one sporting a hot bag.... although it probably pulls it off better. baahaa. Thank you Jason for making me feel like a million bucks!

Just for now

2010-05-19T07:25:00.000-07:00

Imogen Heap preforms the ultimate round with herself...... this is neato.... the end.

sexy

2010-05-18T12:06:00.000-07:00

First You Pick It Up, Put It In The Bag, Boom Boom

2010-05-14T21:06:00.000-07:00

K. This clip is kind of long, but well worth while for anyone who enjoyed this cartoon as a child!!!! Kara: this one is for you.

Birthday Basset

2010-05-14T08:36:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to me! It has been a wonderful birthday! I celebrated with my family on Sunday, and had a fabulous time! I received a sewing machine from my parents (which I am very excited about!) and all the needed accessories in a darling tote thingy from my sisters. I purchased fabric with the awesome birthday cash I got from my grandparents (thanks guys!!) and already started a quilt. It will be very interesting to see how it turns out.... I am usually bad at stuff (haha... but really). Penni came up for a visit and gave me State Fair on DVD!!!! I seriously was thrilled! Granddad: I watched it and you were right.... it was a real goodie!!! The DVD set included the newer version that I haven't watched yet, does anyone know if that one is any good? Tonight Chris E and I are going to Le Nonne with the Spillman's (our kick-A friends Danny and Sarah that are expecting a little Spillman....it is totally going to be the event of the season). Anyways.... the point is life is good, and although I am not thrilled to be getting older, it is so much better then the alternative. Thanks to everyone out there in the world that have made these 26 years of mine rock! (The above picture thrills me and makes me miss my Floozy! Basset pictures are perfect for ever occasion, aren't they.)

Ode to "boolish"

2010-05-12T07:12:00.000-07:00

Back in the fall of 2005, when I moved here to Cache Valley I was strolling along the grocery store when I stumbled upon Otis Spunkmeyer's BOOLICIOUS cookie dough!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Who would've though my life would be changed forever?? All my life I have been freakishly fond of cookie dough. If I had a fight with a boyfriend or just having a girls-night I would often buy a container (sometimes huge sausage like chubs) of cookie dough. YUMMO! (in Rachel Ray's creepy goblin voice). Well Boolish, as I like to call it, was in a completely different league then those childish cookie doughs. It was chocolate dough! Sweet succulent CHOCOLATE dough. It had white chocolate chips and orange (colored) chocolate chips. It was sold in the frozen isle and it was SO good!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I bought like 5 to 10 packages that Halloween season (really healthy...) but little did I know that I would never see boolish again after that. Yes, that's right, I only was aware of it's existence for one measly season and then some big shot with Otis Spunkmeyer decided to pull the product.

Every Halloween season I search for boolish. During other holidays I look for a spin-off of boolish... like "heartlicious" or "Shamrocklicious" (maybe not shamrocklicious). Chris has tried to tell me "boolish is gone.... you've got to let it go" but I can't!!! Several months ago I went to the Otis Spunkmeyer site and wrote an "ode to boolish" type letter. I asked them how I could get more. I asked them if there is a second best (pfff) option. I asked them to help me.

Well, I never heard back! That's right.... Otis doesn't care about his number one fan. Granted, I may have frightened the reader..... but I didn't even get a courtesy e-mail or a coupon or anything? Well that is just cold hearted.

Last month while Chris was taking his g-mat I was driving around Ogden killing time, and stumbled upon an Otis Spunkmeyer Plant (who knew) and went in search of answers. No leads were found and I am left boolicous-less.

I guess I need to just look back fondly on the memories I had with boolish.

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

To Chris E's mom Penni: Thank you for being the mother that you are to Chris and me. You are responsible for bringing CHRIS COOK into this world (the greatest accomplishment of all time!!) Thank you for always putting a smile on my face! Chris and I really love you.

To my Grandmom: Wow. I love and admire you so much. You are always there for every single member of this family. I love your dried fruit, and your pickle relish. I love the quilts that you've made me, and I love having you as my grandmom.

Mom, I love you. Remember that time that me and two of my best friends were having a joint-14th birthday pool-party extravaganza? And we all wanted matching two piece swim-suites???? Well, the other moms said yes, and you wouldn't allow it. I was SO mad. Well, here it is: YOU WERE RIGHT. I was a late bloomer and had the bod of an 11 year old. 14 year old girls don't need two-piece swimming suites.... let alone 11 year old girls. The point is, you are a great mom. You were my friend when I needed a friend and my mom when I needed a mom. You have never failed me. Here are just a few things you taught me:

-not to be a picky eater (the most important trait, I believe)

-how to separate yolks from whites

-how to speed clean with "green juice" (readers: this is not a drug:))

-to ski with a V or an I shape (not an X or W)

-tirimisu isn't against the word of wisdom (Susan Hainsworth eats it)

-"If My Dog Were Green" and every other song under the sun.

-How NOT to catch or throw a ball.

-chocolate=yum.

-how to drive (haha)

-how to fold paper into an envelope shape

- burping at dinner parties is a no-no

The truth is, you taught me everything that is good about me.... and everything that is bad about me I picked up elsewhere. Thank you. I love you.

Weekend Update

2010-05-04T12:27:00.000-07:00

I had a fantastic weekend. When I got home from work on Friday we went to the Utah State Pottery sale. I purchased the orangy lidded pot below. I can't believe someone MADE it... the lid fits perfectly... how do they do it? Amazing! When I got home I couldn't shut up about how fun it was to get something that wasn't made in a factory and reproduced a thousand times. Then Chris surprised me with another piece that he purchased while I wasn't present. It's the pretty pinkish blueish little number on the left. I LOVE IT. It is just so girly and lovely. Thank you Chris E. The picture really doesn't do either piece justice. It was fun to get a "prize" (as they call it in Kara's family).

On Saturday we went to Yah Poh, which is a yummy Chilean restaurant here in Logan. Jason's uncle Jose was performing there in his mariachi style band. Highlights included: Delicious empinada's, and Jason's face turning beet red when urged to dance in front of all of the patrons of the restaurant. HAHA! That was rad.

On Sunday we went to the Cache Valley Flee Market. Not cool. Nuf said. Then we went home and Jason did some construction in mine and Chris E's room. He put in new floor boards and they look beautiful. That night Chris made the most amazing breakfast for dinner. EVER. (Chris: the bacon was absolutely NOT too crispy). All and all it was a very fun weekend.

Last night Chris and I grilled up some smokey Texas-style ribs and tried our hand at making baba ghanoush. It was quite the yummy feast! Once again, the photo does no justice.

P.S.

I understand that people out there in the world might not really care about what I had for dinner. Well too bad. What I have for dinner just happens to be the most important and most exciting thing in my life. :)

just because

2010-05-01T15:44:00.000-07:00

This clip is a treasure! what a great SNL skit by Mia Rudolph that spoofs a pet peeve of mine (singers that think they are hot stuff because they slide around from note to note like something is caught in their throat). BA HA HA.... I am still totally LOL-ing.

Solid Potato Salad - The Ross Sisters (1944)

2010-04-30T02:43:00.000-07:00

I LOVE this clip. Somehow we stumbled upon this video, by mistake, a while back (thank goodness). I don't know whether to laugh or throw up.... the ending is the best! Enjoy!

CHRIS E

2010-04-28T21:41:00.000-07:00

I love Chris E. He is the most amazing (and attractive) man. His middle name is Earl (cool middle name, I know) so I call him Chris E (pronounced Chrisy). He is so smart and hilarious... it's incredible! He recently graduated with a degree in Economics and will soon be pursuing his MBA. I honestly could not be more proud to have him as my husband. I might point out that our names are also soul mates: Chris/Krista and Cook/Baker. Here is our story!

We were friends for ages before ever becoming more, and then one day it was like "HELLO!" After months of flirting, we began a secret romance (we didn't want to rock the boat amongst all of our friends for just a crush thingy). All of the sudden it wasn't just a crush thingy. Back in the summer of 2005 he took me on an impromptu outing to (dot dot dot) Wyoming Downs. We spent the entire day at the trashy horse track in the blazing hot sun placing $1 bets on horses. Though it was nothing like the scene in My Fair Lady (where she yells "move your blommin' A$$" in a extravagant black and white gown), it was one of the best days of my life. That day I knew I was wild about him! We had so much fun just hanging out together and I couldn't get him off of my mind.

Soon after that he moved to Logan and I was still living in Provo (which sits on top of Hell, I think). I missed him A LOT! When Craig passed away, he was the first person I called besides my mom. Chris dropped everything, grabbed only his toothbrush, and came straight down from Logan to be there for me. He took an entire week off of his life to help me get through the saddest week of mine. After that I needed to relocate to kind of get a fresh start. I was like "hmm, where shall I go???? I hear it's lovely in LOGAN!" Ha ha! Shortly after, Chris and I "went public" with our relationship, HOORAY! We dated for a couple years and then got hitched. Sometimes he drives me nuts. He leaves dirty socks here and there, and forgets about the chapstick in his pocket that later wreaks havoc on the laundry... but man I love him! Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure:Chris as a kiddo. His mom wanted a pic of him in his little league get-up, he insisted his bike (that sweet huffy in the background) be included.

I asked Jason and Chris E to smile for this Denver pic.... this is what I get..... thanks a lot guys.

Never had a thing for jocks....... this picture is definitely an exception! :)

Halloween: I was Michael Jackson they were boy scouts (get it)

This one makes me laugh. Chris E as a thug...

the "I'm cool cuz I bleach my hair" phase... I wish I could say my hair dyeing phase was as short as his.

Chris E: I love you.

ODE TO ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

2010-04-27T07:12:00.000-07:00

Okay. This is my favorite television show of all time. I am deeply disturbed that it was cancelled in 2006 after only three short seasons. This show was smart, hilarious, and unique. It somehow managed to be cynical AND optimistic ("I didn't take 'not optimistic it could be done' for an answer"). It had a star studded cast. My favorite character was/is Lucille Bluth (Jessica Walter)... just a glimpse of her face sends me into a laughing fit. Chris's favorite is Gob Bluth (Will Arnett.) I mean, what is not funny about a grown man who is desperate to get back into the Magicians Alliance? David Cross is hilarious as the blue man group wanna be, never-nudest, Mrs. Featherbottomy Tobias Funke. Oh heck every Character is wonderful. There is rumored to be an Arrested Development movie in the making.... please, please, please, pretty please, let it be so. Anyone who has watched this show and wasn't wild about it, I urge you to re-watch it! Every time I re-watch I fall more in love. Chris and I went camping last summer, and as lame as we are, we brought the laptop and stayed up late in our tent watching episodes. It is a little ridiculous that we brought the lap-top camping (defeats the purpose and blah blah blah) but we had a good time!!! We both get a kick out of it. Here are some pics that make me happy!

Oh, and about my last post MUSICALS!!! I have a terribly embarrassing confession. I have never seen State Fair, or Guys And Dolls! I know. THE SHOCKING HORROR! I have tried to get my hands on both of these repeatedly, it just hasn't worked out YET! I will see them, and I will love them. Also, I should have put Anchors Away in the Honorable mentions.

MUSICALS!

2010-04-25T09:47:00.000-07:00

Right now I am watching The King and I. I have a love (perhaps an obsession) with musicals. When I was a kid I borrowed movies from my grandparents and many of those movies came out 40 years before I was born. Well, I didn't know that and enjoyed them every bit as much (and often more) then the new movies and cartoons for young kids. Here are the TOP MUSICALS (for me) OF ALL TIME!

#11 AN AMERICAN IN PARIS

Gene Kelley.... delicious. I love him. This movie is beautiful, and romantic, it's in Paris for heck sakes. Some people don't enjoy the dream sequence's. Idiots.

#10 SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS

This one is a goodie. I used to think how fun it would be if my sisters and I married all brothers. That would be really freaky, now that I think about it. The women in this movie have always been so beautiful to me.

#9 CHICAGO

I was painting the bathroom a few months ago, and I had this movie playing in the background. It played 3 full times and I had no problem with that. The songs in it are so freakin' good. It is a dark and delightful musical. All of Queen Latifa's scenes and the closing number make me happy.

#8 MULAN ROUGE

OK. This movie is a treasure. I love it a lot more then #8 when Jason and I are driving around belting out the love ballads at the top of our lungs in perfect harmony! I have love for all things Baz Luhrman (Strictly Ballroom, Romeo and Juliet, WATCH THEM). Though the songs are not originals, they were made original.... well done.

#7 SINGIN' IN THE RAIN

Gene Kelley, I love you!!!!!!!!!!!! When he has that door step scene with Debbie Reynolds while it's pouring rain and then charmingly dances with his umbrella.... well it is just the most romantic thing! I love Leana Lamont "What am I, Dumb or somthin?"

#6 SOUTH PACIFIC

"Some Enchanted Evening" brings tears to my eyes. His voice is amazing! This movie is heart wrenching and lovely. There are a few odd technicolor experiments, but I am so over it.

#5 THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE

I loved it as a kid and it still delights me. I had the privillage of seeing the broadway debut in New York with my mom. WOW, it was good. Julie Andrews and Mary Tyler Moore star, and far too few people have seen this. Our family named our cats Millie and Miss Dorothy in honor of this wonderful film. We are nerds.

#4 MARY POPPINS

Had a tape of this movie as a kid and watched it until it went fuzzy. This is a great movie, everyone knows why. I love how Mary is kind of stuck up. I love when Michael is running for his life so he doesn't have to put his money in the bank. I love when they fly kites in the end. I love when they clean the nursery. I love when she pours cough syrup out in different colors. "strawberry cordial, delish."

#3 MY FAIR LADY

Audrey Hepburn, what a fox. I get a kick out of my sister Kara quoting a scene or two from this movie. The little dear. This movie has such elaborate scenes and costumes, wow. On The Street Where You Live, sigh.

#2 HIGH SOCIETY

Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, Frank Sinatra, HORRAY!!!! This movie is beautiful. The "True Love" song oozes romance. Louis Armstrong is also in this one and I adore him completely! SEE THIS ONE.

I got a little carried away with the list so I guess there are going to be three number one's. It's my list...

#1 MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS

Judy Garland is my favorite star that ever was! The "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" scene makes me weap. Chris E watches this film with me every Christmas, at my request, and it is my favorite part of christmas. Bar none.

#1 WEST SIDE STORY

The best overall score, for sure. I think this is my mom's favorite, and the woman has impecible taste. All the hits (Maria, America, Somewhere, and Tonight) are great, but there are also all these like mini-songs in it that I love. Chris and Jason were in a USU stage production of West Side Story.... it was awful (sorry guys). It was really the worst. But nothing can stop me from loving this movie full heartedly. Watch it with a box of tissues.

#1 THE WIZARD OF OZ

This one gets a #1 because my #1 favorite song of ALL TIME is "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". I made myself a CD of 14 different versions of this song and I would be happy to listen to it, on repeat, for the rest of my life. Judy Garland's version, of course, being the best. This movie is IT.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

The King and I

The Sound of Music

GiGi

Rent

The Unsinkable Molly Brown

Carousel

NINE (this one might move up on the list after I get the chance to re-watch it, I'm a re-watcher)

Flower Drum Song

Brigadoon (sigh)

Hello Dolly

....The list goes on....

rain, rain, don't go away

2010-04-23T08:45:00.000-07:00

It just rained!!!! I LOVE rain! Here in Logan rain is a precious commodity, it's usually a blizzard or blazing hot. I love the way rain makes the world smell and actually look GREEN. I am particularly thrilled because J-son and I planted our "garden" (a three by three patch near our door ) last week, and it hasn't died yet! woot woot! This rain is totally going to keep our garden from dieing even longer! :) Is it odd that I love dreary weather? It makes me want to cuddle up on the couch and watch a really depressing movie!

lasik AGAIN!!!!

2010-04-22T13:25:00.001-07:00

I am bugged. Before I get into it, let me talk a bit about my job. I work for an Ophthalmologist and get to do a variety of jobs. I am an optician, so I fit patients for glasses, fix glasses, adjust glasses, sell glasses, merchandise glasses, sunglasses, bifocals, reading glasses, piano glasses, glasses, glasses, glasses, glasses, glasses, glasses, glasses......... I also train people how to wear contacts and take care of them. I do all of the glasses and contact lens ordering for our office. I am the receptionist for the office. I do all the medical billing for the office. I am a make shift office manager, I also assist the doc with lasik procedures. It can get busy, and, in June, we are adding a ophthalmologist/retinal specialist to the office. That'll add a whole new dimension to my work. There is a point to the story I promise.

My dear husband, Chris-E, started wearing glasses a few years back, when I got into the biz. He has pretty poor vision but just didn't know it. NOTE TO READER: GET YEARLY EXAMS! START AT A YOUNG AGE! Now that I work for an office that offers lasik, I have really wanted Chris-E to get it. Not that he doesn't look ultra hot in glasses (he does), but I just wanted for him to see well. Plus, we were getting a steal of a deal! So he had lasik last month, everything appeared to have gone perfectly, just like EVERY OTHER PATIENT WE'VE SEEN. BUT NO! His vision is now very blurry, only NOW, his glasses won't even help. What went wrong? I can tell you, I am in charge of operating the lasik machine, while the doc "points and shoots" and comes up with what calculations to use for the RX. So, I don't have the power to jack up someones vision (as long as I do my part of entering in all the right data and calibrating the machine properly... WHICH I PROVED I DID) Everything went smoothly so apparently the Doc didn't get the correct refraction/prescription. Now poor Chris-e has to have lasik AGAIN!

:( It was majorly disappointing for us when we were expecting great vision and got worse vision instead. It was embarrassing for me, because I encouraged Chris-e to have done after witnessing so many people have great results. I don't blame Dr. Hammond because the whole thing was a major fluke, and I know he feels badly and will fix it. It was just kind of a bummer. Chris scheduled (several months ago) the G-MAT, and he got his lasik done a week prior (leaving plenty of time to recover, we thought). Only, he couldn't see to read... or to study... or to freaking DRIVE!!!! ERK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GRIPES!!!!!!! FOOOO-Y!!!! SWEARWORD!!!!!!! This only added extra stress and anxiety... we rush ordered some glasses in his new rx and he took the test and did marvelously (of course). It was just a really frustrating situation! Today he came in to my work (again) to have a pre-op appointment (again). He has to request time off of work next week (again) and go through the recovery process (again). I am just praying that we are not cursed and that things will go as smoothly as they have always gone for everyone else. SORRY THAT WAS SO LONG WINDED!

FIRST BLOG EVER!!!

2010-04-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

HELLO BLOG WORLD! This is my first post ever! Sometime soon I will post some pictures and what not. I already don't know what to say. It's weird. I feel like posting "My name is Krista, I live in Logan Utah...." but the thing is, anyone who reads this would already know that much! I guess what I want to say is this: I feel like many people in my life don't know me very well. It seems like people knew me as a kid, or in high school, but very few people STILL know me. I feel like I am struggling to LET people know me, so maybe writing it down would help me out.

Here is a little piece about me called: I love being an adult!

I feel like when you are a kid you just float about. You do as you are told, you go about your kid business, and you don't really have an opinion. I think I stayed in that phase longer then many people do. I really didn't feel interested in a lot of things. I didn't have an opinion about much at all. The point is, I have really enjoyed being an adult! Is that a really strange thing to say? Do other people feel that way??? I think about it nearly every day. It feels so good to clean the kitchen because I WANT it clean. It feels wonderful to decide what to buy at the store, or give myself rides places! Obviously I have responsibilities too, but it FEELS like I do whatever I want when I want. I love cooking for FUN, and picking what to cook! I love having Jason live with Chris and me. People think it is weird, and I GET TO DO IT ANYWAY. I love having a job and doing it well. I love my life! I love having a sleepover with Chris every single night! I love staying up late, or sleeping in late, or going to a movie of my choice, wearing what I want, saying out loud what I think, dying my hair, grabbing a coffee, voting, a MILLION THINGS!!!!! I feel my parents raised me really well, and there is close to nothing I would change about my up-bringing. I have just really enjoyed this part of my life where I get to raise myself for a bit.

(let me just say, I don't understand punctuation very well. I over use exclamation points, I write a lot of run-on sentences, I've got terrible spelling and I don't understand when to use semi-colons even though my sister Lisa (and many teachers) have tried to teach me. SORRY :)